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• Eyes $1trn GDP in 8 years
From Uche Usim, Abuja
CENTRAL Bank of Nigeria
(CBN) Governor, Dr Yemi
Cardoso, has called for re-
straint in stampeding the new
management to miraculously
reset the country’s monetary
policy powerhouse, saying
there is “no magic to wave at
economic challenges” chok- ing the nation.
Cardoso stated this in an
article he authored and sent
to the media. The article
titled: “Preliminary assess- ment of the challenges facing
the CBN”, he x-rayed the alba-
trosses asphyxiating the coun-
try and assured that the right
steps and needed policy inter-
ventions would be deployed
to sail the Nigerian economy
back to calmer waters.
He said: “It must be emphasised that CBN does not have a
magic wand that can be waved
at the current economic chal-
lenges. The problems facing
the bank are large and com-
plex. However, with focused
leadership and sustained re-
forms, it is expected that over
time, the country will gain
open economic spaces, attract
new investments, create em-
ployment, and give our hard-
working and talented com-
patriots an opportunity for a
more prosperous future’.
Some of the challenges
listed by Cardoso include: fail-
ure in corporate governance
in CBN, diminished institu- tional autonomy and ways the
public and financial systems’
stakeholder confidence can be
restored in the autonomy and
integrity of CBN
He stated further: “What needs to be in place to revert
to evidence-based monetary
policies? “Discontinuation
of unorthodox Monetary
policies and Foreign Currency
management? Unorthodox
use of Ways and Means spend- ing: What controls can CBN
develop to enforce statutory
limits in the use of Ways and
Means of financing public sec-
tor deficit?”
Cardoso also dwelt on is-
sues around foreign exchange
backlog. “How much of the
backlog is real versus specu-
lative/ hoarding? “Are there
creative financing options for
clearing the short to medium
term backlog?
“For lack of clarity in fiscal
and monetary relationships
– where are the delineations,
and what should be the limits
in CBN’s fiscal side interven-
tions?
